LAMITAN CITY, Basilan — “There’s no let up,” this was the statement of Cielito Llano, the chief of Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) In Basilan province last week.
Llano told Newsline, Basilan is making headway in clearing the province of illegal drugs as it cleared 105 of 216 barangays (48.61 percent in the province. In Lamitan City, 26 out of 45 (57.778%) barangays have been declared drug-free
Cielito Ilano, Provincial Officer of PDEA Basilan said that there will never be a let-up in the anti-narcotics campaign.
Ilano said that the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. is focused on rebuilding the economy, compared to the previous administration of Rodrigo Duterte which focused on the war on drugs.
“There aren’t many changes in the national policy, but our current administration is more focused on economic recovery. The war on drugs may have taken a backseat. Compared to the previous administration of President Duterte, it was really focused on illegal drugs, so the impact on drug trafficking is quite big,” Ilano said.
The PDEA coordinates with the local governments to ensure that illegal drugs are eradicated in the province.
Partnered with advocacy campaigns and programs such as education and sports for youth and former drug offenders as an intervention to prevent them from being lured into illegal drugs again.
“This is what we keep reminding our local executive chiefs that even though we have a drug-cleared status, it doesn’t mean that it will stay that way. Because from time to time we can have drug affectation again. We always remind them that our advocacy campaigns are continuous and in fact, our office is always open for them for guidance,” Ilano said.
“People have been approaching us to apply for drug-clear status. There are some missing in their documents so that they can be declared,” Ilano said.
Ilano added that there is a requirement to be granted that status. “We need the list of the suspected offenders and enroll them in rehabilitation and reformation center,” Ilano said.
“With the help of Balay Silangan (reformation center), former drug offenders will be given the opportunity to change their lives through the assistance provided by the government,” Ilano added.
